Nearly five million taxpayers make use of some form of tax break related to capital taxes, creating a total cost of €9.06 billion for the state. The scale of these exemptions—and their considerable impact on public revenue—has intensified debate over whether the existing framework should be revised.
One of the most notable findings concerns the Special Real Estate Tax (known by its Greek acronym, EFA). Although the exemption applies to just 12,519 cases, it carries a staggering cost of more than €6.34 billion. It is a striking example of a tax break with an exceptionally large fiscal footprint relative to the number of beneficiaries, prompting questions about its design and purpose.
Exemptions on property transfer tax represent another significant burden, amounting to €2.43 billion and benefiting 13,516 taxpayers. By contrast, exemptions related to the country’s annual property tax, ENFIA, have a much smaller budgetary impact—€93.63 million—even though nearly five million people benefit from them. This contrast shows that ENFIA accounts for the largest number of exemption applications, but the fiscal cost per taxpayer is relatively modest.
Other exemptions linked to inheritances, donations, parental transfers of property, and gambling winnings surpass €200 million. Within inheritance tax alone, there are 154 cases currently under deferred taxation, along with reductions granted to heirs with disabilities of 67 percent or more, costing €340,575. The budget report also notes that some tax declarations could not be accurately classified, yet these still contributed to a revenue loss of more than €1.35 billion.
